


will you still love me when the night steals the day?

by blowthepiri



Category: Dreamcatcher (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Practical Magic, Blood Magic, F/F, Witchcraft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-31
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-08 17:21:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27260380
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blowthepiri/pseuds/blowthepiri
Summary: “I- Remember that list I made, when we were kids after mommy died?”“The one about the perfect person who will never exist?” Minji chuckles. “Yeah, what an imagination you have on you.”“But Minji,” Yoohyeon says, chest tightening. “I think she does exist.”
Relationships: Kim Yoohyeon & Kim Minji | JiU, Kim Yoohyeon/Lee Yubin | Dami, mentioned Kim Minji | JiU/Lee Siyeon, mentioned past Kim Minji | JiU/Kim Bora | SuA
Comments: 9
Kudos: 68





	will you still love me when the night steals the day?

**Author's Note:**

> while this is inspired by practical magic i have definitely made some different choices.

The list is very specific. 

  1. They must be a Prince 
  2. They must be shorter than me, but not too short 
  3. They must have a Y-shaped birth mark (for Yoohyeon) 
  4. Their favourite colour must be yellow 
  5. They must love music



The list is so specific that Yoohyeon knows this person will never exist. She won’t fall in love, won’t lose love due to the curse, because this person can’t be real.

If she doesn’t fall in love, she won’t have to end up like her own mother — dead of a broken heart after the curse killed her father. She thinks that may be the worst fate of all. Even at the age of ten, she knows this.

She says the incantation, slowly and precisely, ripping up the list and letting it blow out into the wind. 

* * *

Yoohyeon stays reserved. She doesn’t fall in love once. Sure, she’s had boys and girls look her way since she was a freshman in high school, _despite_ the fact that everyone whispered about her and her family behind their backs because of their families heritage. 

(“I heard that her older sister hexed a boy and his two front teeth fell out,” one girl whispered one day, and Yoohyeon shook her head. They forgot about the part where the boy had cornered Minji and held her trapped between himself and the wall.

“That girl is a menace. Flirting with every boy and girl like they belong to her,” another girl scoffed. “I wish that family would pack up and leave. They’re bringing darkness and sin into our town.”)

Minji, as the whispers suggest, is a little freer with giving her love away. She falls in love often and fast, but not hard enough for the curse to strike any of the people she loves dead. 

And despite the rumours swirling about Yoohyeon’s family… none of it is proven true. No one knows for sure that they are witches. They just have the old town stories, which span centuries, and the mysterious things that happen when they get one of them mad. 

* * *

It’s late, she knows that because she’s sleeping, but her phone is ringing. 

“Hello?” 

“Yooh…” 

Yoohyeon bolts upright. “Minji, what’s wrong?” 

“Yoohyeon, can you come get me, please?” Minji’s voice is small, kind of broken in a way that makes chills go down Yoohyeon’s spine. Something is wrong. 

“I’ll be right there,” Yoohyeon says, her phone between her ear and her shoulder. She rushes around her room to get ready as quickly as she could, putting on pants and a sweatshirt. “Ji, stay on the phone with me, okay? I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

Minji’s breath is stuttering. She’s crying. “Okay.” 

Yoohyeon drives through the small town until she’s at the front door of Minji’s girlfriend, Bora. Yoohyeon pounds on the door. 

Bora opens up. 

“I dumped her and now she’s having some kind of —” Bora’s hands flutter. “— mental breakdown, or something?” 

Yoohyeon glares at the girl. She’s never liked her. She’s too loud, and too raunchy, and she just _knew_ Minji would wind up hurt. 

“Why did you break up with her?” She already knows the answer. Probably. Needs to hear it, though.

Bora gives Yoohyeon a look like Yoohyeon is stupid. “Come on,” she says with a scoff. “I know what happens to the people you lot fall in love with. I’m young. I’m hot. I don’t want to die and I certainly don’t want to die because of _your sister._ ” 

Yoohyeon grits her teeth, trying to stop herself from snapping Bora in half, or rotting her skin from the inside out, or something equally as disturbing. Instead, she just punches her in the face. 

“What the hell!” Bora shrieks, holding her nose in her hand.

“I have a fist. I don’t need any magic to hurt you,” Yoohyeon snarls. “Now, where is Minji?” 

“She’s upstairs, you psychopath,” Bora snaps, moving out of Yoohyeon’s way so she can run upstairs. 

Minji is on the floor by Bora’s bed, presumably, legs pushed up to her chest and her arms wrapped around them. Her face is hidden, but Yoohyeon can _feel_ the pain radiating off of her. 

“Ji,” Yoohyeon whispers. “Come on. Get up. Bora isn’t worth it.” 

“I love her,” Minji says, pathetically. “I’ve never felt this way before.” 

Yoohyeon hates to think it, she _does_ , but maybe the bitch was onto something when she broke up with Minji. Of course, she could have been nicer about it and Yoohyeon is sure that Bora did it as meanly as she does everything else. 

“I know,” Yoohyeon says, quiet. “I know you did. But you’ll fall in love again, Ji. You always do.” 

Minji sniffles. 

“Come on. Let’s get home. We can get drunk together, watch a movie.” Yoohyeon rests her chin on Minji’s knee, watching as her older sister perks up a little. 

“Okay,” Minji concedes. 

Yoohyeon helps Minji up, wraps her arm around her waist to bring her downstairs. Bora has a blood-soaked rag pressed up to her nose.

Minji looks confused. 

“I may have punched her in the nose.” 

Minji’s lips quirk up a little bit. “Thank you.” 

“Anything for you, Ji.” 

(Even though Yoohyeon is two years younger than Minji, she’s always been the older sister. Always taking care of Minji, cleaning up her messes, scaring the boys and girls off. And, in this particular case, punching her ex girlfriend in the nose for hurting her. 

That’s just how they were. Minji was the one who needed protecting, and Yoohyeon was the protector.)

* * *

On the night Minji leaves town, with a girl named Siyeon who, for some reason, Yoohyeon trusts implicitly to take care of her. 

“Promise you’ll come back?” Yoohyeon whispers. 

“I’ll always come home,” Minji says back, emotions clear as day on her face. “I love you. You just call and I’ll be here whenever you need me, no matter where I am.” 

“Do you love her enough to do this?” 

Minji looks over her shoulder at Siyeon, who’s waiting patiently by her car, leaning on it. 

“What _is_ enough, Yooh?” 

Yoohyeon nods, conceding, because she has a point. When you’re _them,_ with this curse over their heads, what is enough in regards to love? 

“I’m going to miss you.” 

Minji turns to Siyeon. “Babe, toss me your pocket knife.” 

Siyeon throws and Minji catches. 

Minji opens the knife, carving into her palm, and motioning for Yoohyeon to do the same. They join hands, threading their fingers together as they hug — they’re bonded, now, tied by a thread. Blood magic is extremely risky, from what Yoohyeon read. It’s permanent. 

And when Minji leaves, Yoohyeon can still feel her. A pulse around her to let her know that whenever she needs her older sister to come home, she will. 

* * *

Yoohyeon is getting her morning coffee (a pumpkin spice latte, thank you very much) and is ready to go into work when she hears whispering beside her. Two older women. 

“Did you see that someone new owns that record store downtown?” 

“Yes, a girl with short black hair. Very cute. She looks like a little prince, always wearing pants with her shirt tucked in.” 

“Good thing she re-named the store Prince’s Records.”

Yoohyeon’s brows crinkle. She doesn’t know why she feels tingly all over her body at hearing this information. She hasn’t met this girl yet. She hasn’t stepped foot into that record store in years. 

And, yet… she finds herself going there after her shift at Witch Hazel (aptly named, since it sells crystals, lotions, tarot cards and the like.)

The door makes a ding to announce Yoohyeon’s entrance but no one is inside. The set-up is a little different than Yoohyeon remembers, a little more modern. There are some classic rock records at the forefront, and behind it some indie-rock. 

“Can I help you?” 

Yoohyeon jumps, hand to her chest. She turns and sees the girl that the women are presumably talking about. She’s shorter than Yoohyeon, but not by much, and her hair is black and short.

“Hi,” Yoohyeon says. “I… heard the shop got rebranded so I just wanted to check it out.” 

The girl gives her a quizzical smile, like she’s utterly confused by how Yoohyeon is acting. And honestly? Yoohyeon is, too. She can’t _explain_ it, but she feels some kind of… connection with this girl. That she literally just met five seconds ago. 

“Big fan of Prince, huh?” 

“Ah, well, you know,” the girl says, reaching up to brush her hair out of her face. “He’s an icon.” 

Yoohyeon feels a little at ease when she sees that the girl is a little bit awkward herself. “You know, you have yourself a little fanclub of middle aged moms.” 

The girls face is comical. “What?” 

“I was getting coffee this morning and they were whispering about you in the line-up. That’s how I knew this place got bought out. They said you look like a prince and everything.”

 _She does._

Yoohyeon watches the girls cheeks turn pink. “Well, I—” She stuffs her hands in her pocket. “It’s not like I _try_ to look like a prince.” 

_She just does,_ Yoohyeon says, looking her over. It’s not even that she looks like one, she just… has this air about her. Like she’s respectful, well-mannered and quiet. 

“I’m Yubin, by the way,” the girl says. Yubin. 

“I’m Yoohyeon. I work at Witch Hazel, just down the street.”

Something shifts. Yubin raises her eyebrows a little bit. 

Of course Yubin has heard the rumours. If those women were in here, they probably gossiped about every dirty deed that has ever happened in this town. 

“I, uh,” Yubin says, nibbling on her lower lip. “I must admit, I’ve heard stories about you and your sister. And your family.”

“This town works fast on gossip. It’s like high school,” Yoohyeon jokes, hoping to clear the tension.

It works, sort of. It breaks when Yubin smiles. “I see that. Thanks for the warning,” she says. 

When the door dings again and people start to flood in, Yoohyeon backs up toward the door. “Nice to meet you, Yubin,” she says, earnestly. 

“Nice to meet you too, Yoohyeon,” Yubin says, meets Yoohyeon’s eyes and holds them moments longer than necessary. 

* * *

It’s a boring day. Normally the shop has a bunch of people coming in, both townies and out-of-towners who like to stay in that little bed and breakfast downtown, for Halloween or just for the herbal remedies that are sold here but for some reason… nope. 

Yoohyeon perks up when someone comes through the entrance and it’s Yubin. 

“Hi,” Yoohyeon says, surprised. She totally thought she scared the new girl off. 

“Hi,” Yubin says back. She comes to where Yoohyeon is at the register, rests her elbows on the countertop. “You’re going to think I’m weird, but… I was just getting coffee and I saw the shop and I just _felt_ like I had to come in.” 

_How peculiar,_ Yoohyeon thinks. Yubin’s eyes travel down to Yoohyeon’s coffee where her stick is stirring it by itself. Yoohyeon presses her hand on top of the cop to stop it. 

“So,” Yubin says, looking around. “You’re a rumoured witch who works in a shop called Witch Hazel and you sell witchy things.” 

Yoohyeon barks a laugh. “Yeah.” 

“Makes total sense.” Her eyes continue to scan everything, taking in the crystals, the boxes of cards, the ouija boards, the pendants, everything. “And, what… do you, like, enchant everything so they work?”

Yoohyeon laughs. “No. It doesn’t work that way.”

Yubin bobs her head. “Right, right.” She looks at Yoohyeon again, dark eyes intense and Yoohyeon feels like she’s under a magnifying glass. That is one intense stare. “I really don’t know why I came in here,” she admits. 

“It’s close to Halloween. You were probably just curious, especially given—”

“The rumours I heard about you?” Yubin finishes. Yoohyeon just nods. “Yeah, that’s probably it. I don’t know how to describe it. It was like… a pull.” Yubin just shakes her head. “Weird.” 

Kind of like how Yoohyeon felt the day she went into Yubin’s record store. 

“Weird,” Yoohyeon echoes, voice kind of far away. 

There’s a semi-awkward silence until Yubin grabs a bottle of something and asks, “what does this do?” 

“It’s for penile growth,” Yoohyeon says. 

Yubin’s nose crinkles adorably. “Ah, so not for me, then,” she says with a chuckle. She actually takes a browse around for real this time, reading the labels and looking at what everything is for and what they do until—

“So, is it all true, then?” 

“Is what all true?” Yoohyeon says jovially. 

Yubin gives her a _bitch, please_ face. “What everyone says.” 

“I don’t know. You tell me.” 

Yubin gives a one-shouldered shrug. “I think it’s cool. Even if it’s not true, _that_ being the rumour that’s spread about you is pretty badass.” 

Yoohyeon chuckles. “Ah, well, growing up in a small and conservative town like this… having any rumours about you isn’t exactly a fun time.” 

“Don’t I know it,” Yubin says, pushing her hands into her pockets and leaning back up against the counter. “I grew up in a small religious town. When you’re a lesbian, it gets around and it’s not always pretty.” 

She drops this tidbit of information so casually, but her eyes say different. So, Yoohyeon just replies, “surprisingly, this town doesn’t see an issue in that. They see more of an issue in mine and my sister’s possible witchcraft than they do in the fact that we both like women.” 

Yubin’s eyebrows raise quickly before the mask slides back in place. 

“Interesting priorities your town has,” Yubin says, corners of her lips quirking up. There’s a comfortable silence, this time, with Yubin continuing to browse the store. Until she says— “What’s this thing about a curse?” 

“A c-curse?” Yoohyeon stutters. 

“Yeah. You know, where you or your sister or whoever else in your family loves someone and they just magically. Die. Usually by a freak accident.” 

Yoohyeon coughs. “Ah, well. The story my mother told me before she died is that centuries ago in this town, my ancestor created a curse after her lover shunned her and she was forced to birth his child alone.” 

“I’m sorry about your mother,” Yubin says. “Where’s your dad?” 

Yoohyeon’s quiet. She debates lying about it, but she’s never had a person strike up this type of conversation with her, and not be judgmental about it. 

“He died. Log truck accident.” 

Yubin’s mouth makes an o-shape, but she doesn’t say anything else. Although Yoohyeon doesn’t know her that well, she can tell that she’s smart and can connect the dots on her own. 

Yoohyeon thought that the only coming out she’d have to do, and that it was the worst of it, would be telling Minji she was interested in women (before Minji herself came out). She thinks that essentially confirming the rumours about her family is worse.

“Well,” Yubin says. “I think your store is cool, and I think you’re cool. You’re not scary. I don’t know why people can’t just… shut up.”

Yoohyeon laughs out loud. What a simplistic view. 

“But I should be going. Whenever you feel the weird urge… stop by my shop.” Yubin gives her a smile over her shoulder, one that has Yoohyeon feeling all kinds of warm, before she’s out the door and walking down the street. 

* * *

On the Eve of Halloween, Yoohyeon feels the pull to go back into Yubin’s record store. She hasn’t seen her since that afternoon in Witch Hazel, and everything around her has been reminding her of the other girl. 

The door dings. This time, Yubin is behind the counter, writing something in a binder. 

“Hey,” Yoohyeon says. 

Yubin looks up at her and smiles, brightly. “Hey, Yoohyeon,” she replies. “Fancy seeing you here.” 

Yoohyeon ducks her head. “I just got off at Witch Hazel, and I—” 

“Felt the urge to come back,” Yubin finishes for her. 

“Yeah, that.” It’s still so _odd,_ that Yoohyeon can’t understand why she feels the pull toward Yubin and why on Earth it’s reciprocated. 

Yubin chuckles, closes the binder. “Well, I just have to stock these items. After, we can get coffee if you want? I have someone coming in for the closing shift.” 

“Sure,” Yoohyeon says, and if her heart rate sped up she’s going to ignore it. 

She watches as Yubin pulls boxes and starts to put stuff away. Her eyes linger on her waist longer than necessary, and then they travel up the exposed skin of her back as she reaches up to fix a sign and—

“Wow, what’s that on your lower back?” she blurts out, because she’s an idiot. 

Yubin stands normally and reaches behind herself to touch the mark. 

“Oh, I was born with it.” She turns around fully, lifts her shirt up to show a Y-shaped mark on her skin. 

Yoohyeon’s body goes cold. _That can’t be._

“Can I… listen. I’m not being weird but—” Yoohyeon licks her lips. “Can I get a closer look, please?” 

Yubin gives her a look of utter bewilderment, because why wouldn’t she? Yoohyeon is acting very strange and kind of suspicious. But she lifts her shirt higher. “Go ahead.”

Yoohyeon drops to her knees behind Yubin, who sucks in a breath when Yoohyeon’s fingertips graze over the mark. It’s risen, just a little bit, but it just feels like her skin. Which is very soft, and kind of cold to the touch. 

“Interesting,” Yoohyeon whispers to herself, but she knows Yubin hears. “I’ve never seen a birthmark like that is all.” Yoohyeon coughs and stands up, putting some space between them to stop whatever weird tension is connecting them. 

“Birth marks are rare,” Yubin muses. “Everyone has one, but not everyone has the same one.”

_Yeah, but how many people have this specific one?_

“Can I ask you a totally random question?” 

Yubin’s eyes squint a little but she doesn’t really look surprised. More like, resigned. “Sure.” 

“What’s your favourite colour?” 

There’s so many. Surely it won’t be—

“It’s yellow.” Yoohyeon’s whole demeanor shifts, she can feel it and can sense that Yubin sees it too because she asks, “why?” 

Yoohyeon’s out the door before she can even think about it. 

* * *

She’s touching the palm of her hand, where the scar is. 

“Minji, please feel me. Please feel I need you, please—”

There’s a bang downstairs and Yoohyeon is on high alert. She creeps down the stairs until she sees… until she sees Minji. Yoohyeon’s eyes flood and she dashes down the stairs, almost knocking Minji over with the force. 

“I’m so glad you’re here,” Yoohyeon cries into her neck. 

“What’s going on, Yooh?” Minji whispers. “I heard you, you know. In my head. That you needed me. I was so close to town so I just drove right in. I was going to surprise you tomorrow night.” 

Yoohyeon is still crying. “I- Remember that list I made, when we were kids after mommy died?” 

“The one about the perfect person who will never exist?” Minji chuckles. “Yeah, what an imagination you have on you.” 

“But Minji,” Yoohyeon says, chest tightening. “I think she _does_ exist.” 

Minji’s never been good at hiding her emotions, so when she looks shocked, it’s almost comical. “What do you mean? Who?” 

Yoohyeon wipes under her eyes and sniffles. “There’s a new girl in town. About my age. Shorter than me, but not by much,” she says. “She owns a record store. She literally owns a record store. She loves music. The record store is called Prince Records. _Prince._ And she’s charmingly kin to a prince, too. And her favourite colour is yellow.” She takes a deep, shaky breath. “And… she has a Y-shaped birthmark on her back.” 

Minji’s eyes go wide. “That’s… that’s your whole checklist.” 

“Yes,” Yoohyeon says, pathetic and sad. 

“What are you going to do?” 

“I don’t know.” 

* * *

Yoohyeon finds Yubin at her store. She is just flipping the sign to closed when Yoohyeon creeps in. Yubin doesn’t kick her out or tell her to leave because it’s closing, so that’s a bonus. The lock on the door clicks, and Yubin walks to the work station. 

“I thought you had someone closing,” is what Yoohyeon decides to open with. Neutral. 

“I decided to stay and do some extra bookkeeping and I sent him home early,” Yubin says. Her voice is a little clipped. Curt. 

“Listen, I—” 

“What’s your deal?” Yubin interrupts her. “I’m not talking about the witch thing. I don’t care about that, or the rumours, or whatever. I’m asking… what is your deal? I ask you to get coffee with me and you say yes, and then you obsess over my birthmark and you run out of my store like you couldn’t get away fast enough.” 

Yoohyeon bites on the inside of her lip. “I can’t explain it right now,” she says. 

Yubin just rolls her eyes, flips open her binder. “Whatever, Yoohyeon. I don’t have time for this and I’m much too old for these kinds of games.” 

Yoohyeon makes her way behind the counter, her hand wrapping around Yubin’s wrist. “Stop that for a moment and look at me, okay?” 

Yubin looks at her, stare intense, making Yoohyeon feel lightheaded. Yubin drops the pen but Yoohyeon doesn’t let go of her wrist, and Yubin doesn’t make Yoohyeon let go. Instead, Yubin uses it as momentum to bring herself right up against Yoohyeon. 

“This is a bad idea,” Yoohyeon whispers. 

“Then why are you here?” 

What Yoohyeon’s read in books, heard in lyrics, seen in romance films — it’s _real._ There’s electricity buzzing, a tension that Yoohyeon has never felt with another human being ever, something she never thought she’d be able to feel and yet— 

Yubin’s lips are soft on hers, but when Yoohyeon slides her hand under Yubin’s shirt to pull her closer, her fingers landing on the birthmark, Yubin loses whatever semblance of control she was holding onto. 

Yoohyeon gets pressed into the counter, the edge digging into her tailbone but it doesn’t matter, not when Yubin’s kisses are so hot and her tongue is so silky, and her fingers are so cold and pressing on the back of Yoohyeon’s neck. 

Her whole body is buzzing, strokes of heat licking at her skin every time Yubin touches her and kisses her, her legs are turning to liquid under her and she’s sure that if Yubin wasn’t holding her up between her body and the counter, Yoohyeon would be on her knees. 

Yoohyeon lets everything go for a moment; the witchcraft, her sister, the curse.

_The curse._

Like being doused in cold water, Yoohyeon pushes Yubin back gently. Yubin looks as wrecked as Yoohyeon feels, and she’s wondering if she looks similar. 

“I’m sorry,” Yubin says, swallowing thickly. “I don’t know—”

“Please don’t apologize,” Yoohyeon says. “Please. It’s not that. I just…” She’s at a loss for words, not knowing how to understand it. “I’m sorry.” 

She walks quickly away, ignoring the sting of tears behind her eyes and the way Yubin sounds when calling out her name. 

* * *

When Yoohyeon gets home, Minji is in the kitchen. Yoohyeon can feel it, but she can also feel an additional presence. 

“Handong!” Yoohyeon yells when she finally sees who it is, running to go hug her. 

“Hi, Yoohyeon,” Handong says, hugging Yoohyeon tight and kissing her on the cheek as they part. “I got a call from Minji and I just had to come right away.” 

Yoohyeon looks at Minji curiously. 

“We’re going to get rid of the curse,” Minji says excitedly. “Tomorrow.” 

“How? They’ve tried for centuries.”

“Yes, well,” Minji starts, but Handong cuts her off with— “my coven has encountered such curses and it’s really quite easy to get rid of it. We just need a ritual.” 

Yoohyeon frowns. “If it’s so easy, why didn’t we think of it?” 

“You need an ornate number of witches to complete it,” Handong explains. “We need to make a hexagon and join hands. There will have to be blood magic.” 

Minji and Yoohyeon look at each other. 

“This curse was made from emotion. It was pure anger and hatred that made her cast it. Those are some of the easiest curses to break.” 

Yoohyeon grips Minji’s hand. 

“I have some members of my coven who are able to come help. Minji told me the story about your list, and the fact that you met her. Everyone deserves a chance to be happy, especially you two, who have lost so much in your lifetimes.” 

Yoohyeon feels her eyes flood and she blinks several times to keep her emotions at bay.

“We do it at dusk tomorrow evening,” Handong says. “And Yoohyeon? Bring your girl. She might be able to help.” 

Yoohyeon hugs Minji tight. 

“Thank you,” Yoohyeon says into her shoulder.

“I’m the big sister. It’s my turn to help you,” Minji whispers. 

* * *

Halloween. It’s a cool fall morning, and Yoohyeon feels a bunch of unease and guilt when she grabs a coffee for herself and for Yubin. 

The record store isn’t open yet, but the door is unlocked (it wasn’t, Yoohyeon had unlocked it herself) so Yoohyeon walks in to find Yubin sitting on the counter with her binder in her lap.

“Hi,” Yoohyeon says quietly. “I brought you coffee.” 

Yubin stares at her blankly. 

“Right,” Yoohyeon mutters. “Okay, so.” She takes a long gulp of her coffee. “The curse you asked me about is real.” 

Yubin continues to look at her, so Yoohyeon decides to be transparent. Start from the beginning. 

“My dad died because of the curse, and my mother died of a broken heart,” she starts. Yubin’s expression shifts, slightly. She drops her pen into her binder. Yoohyeon has her full attention now. “So, when I was a kid, I made a list. A list of the person I would fall in love with. The _only_ person I would ever be able to fall in love with. But it was so… out there and bizarre that the person can’t exist.” 

Yubin’s lips part, her eyebrows furrowing. 

Yoohyeon continues, “or at least, shouldn’t exist.” 

Yubin still looks confused. 

“You have a Y-shaped birthmark. Your favourite colour is yellow. You love music. For fucks sake, you’re a modern-day Prince. You’re shorter than me but not by much.” Yoohyeon takes a deep, deep breath. “It’s like… it’s like you were created just for me.” 

“That would be really romantic and cheesy if we weren’t talking about witchcraft,” Yubin deadpans. Yoohyeon feels like she’s about to cry. “So, you made a list and I fit the extremely specific criteria.” 

Yoohyeon nods. 

Yubin sighs, moving the binder from her lap to the countertop. She hops off, walks to Yoohyeon. 

“You’re very weird,” Yubin says, voice gentle. 

“I know,” Yoohyeon replies with a sigh. 

“Is the reason I feel so connected to you because of the list?” 

Yoohyeon bites the inside of her cheek. “I don’t know. Maybe you just really, really like me.” 

Yubin snorts. “But you feel a connection, too? You felt like you _had_ to come in here,” Yubin reminds her. 

“Don’t you believe in fate?” Yoohyeon asks. 

“No,” Yubin says, simply. “Or, I didn’t.” 

Yoohyeon perks up a little. She walks them forward, and forward until Yubin’s back hits the register desk, and Yoohyeon is able to put the coffees down. Her hands, now free, move up Yubin’s arms until they meet behind her neck. 

“Isn’t this doomed, though? Like, won’t I die if—” 

“No,” Yoohyeon says, quiet. “A witch from another coven… she knows how to break the curse. We’re doing it at dusk tonight. I actually came here to not only explain myself but to ask if you could be there.” 

Yubin looks a little timid. “Be there for a … ritual?” Even the words coming from Yubin’s mouth sounds so unnatural and like she’s reading from a script that Yoohyeon laughs. “Hey, it’s not funny, it’s a lot to take in.” 

“I know,” Yoohyeon says, trying to stop the little bursts of laughter. “Sorry, sorry. I know. But, yes. Handong, the other coven’s leader, suggested you be there. Not to participate, but I guess to… be a shining light?” 

Yubin looks a little cocky. “I’m a light?” 

Yoohyeon rolls her eyes. “I don’t know, but you could be. The universe seems to think so.” 

Yubin goes onto her tip toes, wraps her arms around Yoohyeon’s shoulders. “I’m willing to take the risk,” she whispers. 

Yoohyeon physically cannot take it anymore so she leans down and kisses Yubin until they’re both breathless and dazed. 

“You feel that too, right? Like, every time we touch there’s electricity and it’s—”

“Like magic?” Yoohyeon finishes. “Yes, I feel it.” 

Yubin gives her a smile, so soft. “I’ll be there. For… I don’t know what dusk means in witch speak…” 

“Be there for six thirty. So you can meet everyone.” 

“Do I need to wear anything specific, or—”

“No, there isn’t a dress code,” Yoohyeon says with a chuckle.

Yubin blushes, just a tiny bit. “Well, I don’t know what the proper protocol is for meeting a coven of witches,” she snarks.

“The same as meeting one’s parents, I’d assume.” 

Yubin rolls her eyes, leans up to give Yoohyeon one more kiss before pushing Yoohyeon back. “Go, I have to do some work so I can get out of here in time.” 

Yoohyeon grabs her coffee and walks out the door.

* * *

It’s 6:28 p.m. Yoohyeon is fidgeting. The sun is just starting to set. When the doorbell rings, Minji calls up, “Yooh! Your Prince is here!” 

Yoohyeon groans. Yubin has no idea what she’s in for when she meets Minji. 

“Yubin, nice to finally meet you,” Minji says, giving Yubin a kiss on each cheek. Yubin’s ears go pink. “Oh, you’re just as cute as Yooh says you are.”

“Okay, Ji, that’s enough,” Yoohyeon says. 

Yubin mouths to her, _thank you._

Yoohyeon winks. 

“As you may have guessed, this is my sister Minji.”

“Nice to meet you,” Yubin says, cordially. 

Yoohyeon reaches out and grabs Yubin’s hand, pulling her close. She smells so good, feels so soft and warm. She’s known her for such a short time but she already feels soothed by her presence. 

“Okay, lovebirds, I’m going to find Handong. I think she said her coven is arriving.” 

And then she’s gone, leaving Yoohyeon and Yubin alone. 

“Thank you for coming. I honestly thought you wouldn’t.” 

“What do I have to lose,” Yubin whispers. “You know… your list… I think it affected me, too. I’ve had girlfriends but I’ve never felt—” Her hands cup Yoohyeon’s face, and they’re cold so Yoohyeon blames that for the full-body shiver. “I’ve never felt like _this._ ” 

Yoohyeon leans down, gives her a chaste kiss. She feels the presence of other witches in the other part of the house. She grabs Yubin’s hand and tugs her forward. 

“Come. Let’s kick this curse in the ass.” 

Yoohyeon spots Minji and Handong, and three other witches Yoohyeon has never met.

“Yoohyeon, Minji,” Handong says, formally. She turns her eyes to Yubin and they’re softer than Yoohyeon has ever seen. “Yubin. Very nice to meet you. I’m Handong.” 

Yubin smiles and grips onto Yoohyeon’s hand a little tighter. 

“These are my sisters — Yuqi, Yiren and Elkie.” 

Minji and Yoohyeon go through the rounds of their introductions, and they make small-talk, with Yubin resting her cheek on Yoohyeon’s shoulder and listening intently to every word that is being spoken. 

“Okay, ladies,” Handong speaks up. “The sun is about to set. Yubin, may I ask that you touch this knife? Just once, just so.” 

Yubin looks to Yoohyeon, who nods, and does as she’s told. 

“Thank you. Please sit in the centre, over the pentagram.” 

Yubin does as she’s told, but she looks absolutely terrified so Yoohyeon gives her a small smile of encouragement.

They get into formation as the sky outside turns blacker, the orange fading away. Handong walks around the room, lighting every candle that outlines the hexagon. 

Handong begins talking in Latin, an incantation that Yoohyeon personally has never heard before, but she mouths every word and memorizes it.

She makes a startled, pained gasp when the knife tip digs into her palm, blood soaking over. 

“Repeat the incantation,” Handong instructs. 

Yoohyeon does as she's told, repeating it and allowing her voice to rise in volume with each pass. Everything starts to erupt as soon as they all link hands. The room starts to shake, echoing and getting louder, and Yoohyeon feels the heat in her veins. It's hot, so hot that she feels like she's burning from the inside out. Minji must feel it too because she has Yoohyeon's hand in a vice-grip. As their voices get louder, the shaking in the room gets more intense, until—

All the candles all blow out and the shaking stops, and Yoohyeon feels her body go cold, and for one horrifying second she's afraid something went wrong until she feels nothing. Nothing, but somehow like a weight was lifted off her shoulders. Like she can finally breathe in a way she was unable to before.

Handong drops Yoohyeon’s hand, and it's like a domino affect, and they all disconnect. 

“Is-is it over?” Yoohyeon whispers, out of breath.

Handong closes her eyes, her fingers wrapping around Yoohyeon’s wrist, and then Minji’s. 

“Yes. We broke the curse.” 

Yoohyeon breaks out into a huge grin and runs to Yubin in the circle, who is standing and looking utterly and completely disoriented.

“I felt— that was so strange. I felt… I don’t know what I felt. Like, someone was lighting a match underneath my skin and then _normal._ Like nothing even happened. It was so bizarre.” 

Yoohyeon kisses Yubin on the top of the head. 

“Bizarre? Not scary?” 

Yubin brings Yoohyeon’s hand up to her face, kisses the dried-up cut. “No,” she says. “Not scary.” 

“You know I’ve been waiting my whole life for you,” Yoohyeon tells her. “For this.”

“And how does it feel?”

“Freeing.” 

Yubin gives her a shy, gentle smile. “I won’t die if you fall in love with me?” 

“You better not,” Yoohyeon mutters.

“It would be worth it anyway.”

Yoohyeon kisses her quiet, because that was the most romantic thing she thinks she’s ever heard.

“How would you feel about binging on chocolate and wine at my place?”

“That sounds like a perfect first date.”

“I guess Halloween will be our day,” Yubin says, tugging her toward the door. 

Yoohyeon, for the first time since her father died, feels at ease. She seeks out Minji’s eyes and gives her a smile, and Minji mouths, _I love you._

 _I love you back,_ Yoohyeon mouths, hopes she can feel it as she kisses her own palm.

* * *

Yubin doesn’t die, as confirmed by their fourth anniversary on Halloween night, when they get married under the moonlight. 

* * *

(Minji reconnects with Siyeon and brings her to the wedding, tells her the whole ordeal. Siyeon doesn’t care and says she’s loved Minji senselessly for years.

Yoohyeon approves.) 

**Author's Note:**

> [twitter](https://twitter.com/blowthepiris)   
>  [come talk to me about my writing here!](https://curiouscat.qa/blowthepiri)


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